Firefighters responded to a brush fire Wednesday north of Los Angeles on a day of red flag warnings for parts of Southern California.

Firefighters responded to a brush fire Wednesday north of Los Angeles on a day of red flag warnings for parts of Southern California.

The fire first broke out around 10:45 a.m. on Wednesday, rapidly spreading from 500 acres within its first hour to 3,400 acres less than 2 hours after.

Fire crews are battling a swiftly growing blaze dubbed the Hughes Fire burning near Interstate 5 in Castaic, in the northern part of Los Angeles County.

The Hughes fire has prompted mandatory evacuations in Castaic, California, as the fire has a "rapid rate of spread" Cal Fire said.

The Hughes Fire, near the Castaic Lake area, spread to more than 10,000 acres as the smaller Sepulveda Fire broke out along Interstate 405.

CASTAIC, California >> Powerful winds and bone-dry conditions could pose a challenge to firefighters battling new wildfires in southern California today, including a blaze that swelled over the past day and forced tens of thousands of evacuations north of Los Angeles.

Mark E. Potts is the senior editor for video at the Los Angeles Times. A native of Enid, Okla., Potts graduated from the University of Oklahoma with a master’s degree in broadcast journalism. He has created and edited video for DreamWorks, YouTube, Microsoft, Sony and BET.

The Hughes Fire, reported shortly before 11 a.m. Wednesday near Castaic Lake, prompted evacuation of a 280-square-mile area north of Los Angeles. The map above shows the mandatory evacuation area in red and the approximate perimeter as a black line.

Powerful winds and bone-dry conditions were expected to pose a challenge to firefighters battling new wildfires in southern California on Thursday, including a new blaze that swelled over the past day,

A new wildfire broke out in Los Angeles County, California, Wednesday, called the Hughes fire that has already grown to more than 5,000 acres in size.